You do not have to scald your children in order to clean bed bugs off them. Any shower should suffice. Bed bugs are not likely to be on the child himself or herself, but in their clothing or bag. We are told they do not like hair, though on occasion, folks have claimed to be bitten on their heads.

However, I want to make it clear that unless someone has been exposed to bed bugs, I would not toss them in the shower when they walk in.

I have read that bed bugs are killed at a temperature of 113 degrees F and read elsewhere that they are kill at 120 degrees F. Does anyone know how long they have to be exposed to those temperatures? Are there some scientific figures on this?

Also, does anyone know whether bed bugs get into people’s hair?

A brief hot shower at 120 degrees F is quite endurable. When I lived in Arizona the temperature went to 115 degrees F in the shade a heat wave, and it didn’t feel too bad, even when not in the shade.

As you should have guessed by my closing line,

“… is Bracken County’s response too enthusiastic? Is this overkill?”

… I am also skeptical over whether this was an overreaction. You are more or less correct that “preventive” treatment is impossible, though I think what the schools were doing would be classed as reactive, not preventive. Overkill, probably, but reactive still.

I would suspect that the only preventive treatment that might work is a mechanical killer like diatomaceous earth.

However, I think you are wrong that “schools are not the right environment for bed bugs.” Would you like to elaborate on how this is so?

I am also intrigued that you have been fighting bed bugs for over 30 years. Unless you are very old, how is this possible? Please tell us where you live. From what I gather, bed bugs were very scant on the ground in the US until the late 90s.

But, anyway, I applaud a school district taking prompt action and speaking up about it. I hope our schools and college students will be vanguards in this problem. Politics, hotel industry, real estate, property management firms–all those folks have been relatively silent.